Charter Guide

Planning a Charter Itinerary

From the chart desk · SuperYacht International

Published 2019-02-08 · SuperYacht International editorial

A good charter itinerary is a plan held lightly. It is drawn up with the captain, shaped around realistic distances and the weather, and left with enough room to follow the finest day where it leads.

Plan the shape, not every hour

The commonest mistake in planning a charter is to fix it too firmly. A yacht is not a coach tour; the sea does not keep to a printed schedule, and the pleasures that guests remember most, the perfect cove found empty, the extra night at a favourite anchorage, the change of plan to chase settled weather, are precisely the ones a rigid itinerary forecloses. The aim is to agree the shape of the week, where it begins and ends, which places matter to you, how much you want to move and how much to lie still, and then to leave the day-to-day to be decided as you go. This guide sits alongside our Balearics season guide and the wider destinations overview, which describe the places an itinerary might take in.

Working with the captain

The itinerary is a collaboration, and the captain is its author. No one knows the yacht, the crew, the local waters and the current conditions better, and a good captain will listen to what you want before proposing where and how to achieve it. The most useful thing you can offer is not a list of harbours but a sense of priorities: whether you value swimming or shore life, quiet anchorages or lively ports, long lazy days or covering ground; whether there are one or two places you particularly wish to see; and the pace that suits your party.

A preliminary plan is usually sketched before the charter, often through the broker, so that provisioning and any berths can be arranged. It is then refined with the captain on board, frequently over the first evening, and adjusted each day thereafter. Trust the captain's reading of the water; the best weeks come from guests who share their wishes clearly and then let an expert deliver them.

Realistic daily distances

Distance is where itineraries most often overreach. A yacht is a slow way to travel by land standards, and time spent under way is time not spent swimming, lunching or ashore. As a rough guide, a comfortable cruising day covers a modest distance and leaves the afternoon and evening at anchor.

Vessel	Comfortable day	Notes
Sailing yacht	25–40 nautical miles	Wind-dependent; passages take longer
Catamaran	30–50 nautical miles	Steady under sail or power
Displacement motor yacht	40–80 nautical miles	Reliable, fuel a consideration
Fast planing motor yacht	Longer hops possible	At a cost in fuel and comfort

The point is not to maximise miles but to move only as far as leaves the day whole. A week that hops a short distance each morning and lies at anchor by lunchtime will feel unhurried and generous; one that chases a distant destination will feel like a delivery. When the grounds involve longer passages, as between Corsica and Sardinia or across to the mainland, the cruising grounds guide sets out what to expect.

Move only as far as leaves the day whole. A week measured in swims and lunches will outlast one measured in miles.

Balancing passages, anchorages and marinas

A satisfying week alternates three kinds of day. Passage days move the yacht to new water and are best kept short and in the morning, leaving the afternoon free. Anchorage days, the heart of most charters, are spent lying in a cove, swimming, using the toys and eating aboard, with perhaps a short reposition for the night. Marina nights bring the yacht alongside for an evening ashore, dinner in a port and the chance to walk on land, restock and, for guests who wish, step off into a town.

Most parties want more anchorage days than anything else, punctuated by the occasional marina night for variety and by the passages that link the ground together. Too many marina nights and the charter loses the seclusion that is its point; too few and some guests miss the shore. The right balance is personal, which is exactly why it is worth stating your preference early. As a rule of thumb, a relaxed week might hold two or three marina nights among four or five at anchor, but this is yours to shape.

Provisioning stops

Provisioning, the stocking of food, drink and supplies, is arranged by the crew and drawn from the advance provisioning allowance, informed by a preference sheet you complete before boarding. The bulk is loaded before you arrive, so the yacht is stocked from the first hour. During the week, fresh provisions, a special ingredient, or restocking on a longer charter are gathered at marina stops or by the crew going ashore, without disturbing your day. You need do nothing beyond setting out your tastes in advance; the more the galley knows, the better it will cook for you. Our note on provisioning and preference sheets explains how to fill one in well.

Weather and captain's discretion

The single reason to hold an itinerary loosely is the weather. Mediterranean summers are largely settled, but wind and sea change, and an anchorage that is idyllic in a light breeze can be untenable when the wind swings. Every charter contract therefore reserves to the captain the final decision on where the yacht goes and where she lies, in the interests of the safety and comfort of all aboard. This is the captain's discretion clause, and it is a protection, not a restriction: it is what allows the captain to move you to the sheltered side of an island, to delay a passage until a blow has passed, or to seize a fine day to reach somewhere the forecast will soon close off.

Guests occasionally arrive with a fixed picture of a particular anchorage on a particular night and are briefly disappointed to be redirected. Almost always the captain's choice proves the better one. Come with priorities rather than a fixed script, and the weather becomes a collaborator in the week rather than a spoiler of it.

Special requests

An itinerary is also where particular wishes are woven in: a birthday or anniversary to be marked, a favourite dish, a dietary need, a diving day, a wish to reach a specific restaurant ashore, a quiet proposal at anchor. The earlier these are shared, the more surely they can be arranged, since some require a berth to be booked, a supplier to be found, or the timing of the week to be shaped around them. Nothing reasonable is too much to raise; the value of a crewed charter lies precisely in a week built around you. Raise them with the broker at the enquiry stage and again with the crew on board.

A worked sample week

The following is a Balearic week that shows the principles in practice. It is deliberately unhurried, and it remains a sketch to be adjusted with the captain and the forecast.

1. Day one. Board in the late afternoon at Palma. Settle in over dinner aboard in the bay; no passage on the first evening.
2. Day two. A short morning hop west along the Mallorcan coast to an anchorage near Andratx. Swim and lunch aboard; a quiet first full day.
3. Day three. A morning passage towards Ibiza. Anchor along the west coast in the afternoon; a marina night in Ibiza for dinner ashore.
4. Day four. The short run to Formentera. A long lunch at anchor over the sand; the whole day given to the water.
5. Day five. Formentera's southern beaches by day. A brief reposition to a sheltered cove for a peaceful night at anchor.
6. Day six. The return passage north-east in the morning, provisions topped up, into a final Mallorcan cala for a last quiet evening aboard.
7. Day seven. A gentle morning swim, then back to Palma to disembark after breakfast.

Three anchorage-led days, one marina night, two easy passages and a whole day at Formentera: a shape, not a schedule. When you are ready, browse the fleet, read the charter overview, and make an enquiry with your dates and priorities, and we will draw up a week that fits.

Common questions

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This guide is general information, not legal, tax or insurance advice. To plan a charter, make an enquiry or browse the yachts.

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Read next

• The Balearics, by season
• The Western Med grounds
• Provisioning & preferences